Seam sealer



R. J. EVANS Oct. 14, 19 69 SEAM SEALER Filed Oct. 17. 1966 INVENTOR RICHARD J- EVANS ATTORNEY United States Patent r ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A manually operated seam sealer for applying adhesive to the edges of flexible sheets to be bonded together to form a butt joint.

This invention relates generally to a seam sealer and more particularly to a seam sealer adapted to seal but joints. Still more particularly, the invention relates to a device adapted to seal butt joints in thermoplastic flexible surface coverings such as floor coverings.

The sealing of seams in floor coverings which contain a layer of cellular material has been an outstanding problem. The cellular layer is compressible. When a football presses on the floor covering in the vicinity of a seam, one side of the butt seam tends to become depressed while the other side tends to remain at its full thickness. The resulting protrusion on the floor covering is a-hazard in that it may catch the heel or sole of a shoe. Additionally, it is quickly broken, thus rendering the floor covering unsatisfactory. The solution of the problem has been to seal the opposing faces of the butt seam in a floor covering having a cellular layer with an adhesive strong enough that one side of the butt seam will be pulled down when the other side is depressed by traffiic. But it has been very diflicult to find a system for accomplishing such sealing. Various seam sealing devices have been tried, and while some are fairly effective, there remains a need for a more effective device.

It is the primary object of the present invention to supply such a device. It is another object of the present invention to supply a seam sealer which will introduce into a butt seam the proper amount of a liquid adhesive to the proper depth in order to form a strong bond at the butt seam.

These objects are accomplished in a straightforward and simple manner. The invention comprises a seam sealer comprising a body having a flat bottom adapted to slide along a flat surface having therein a butt seam to be sealed. A projection is mounted on the bottom, the projection being adapted to slide between and open the opposing faces of the butt seam to be sealed as the seam sealer is pushed along the seam. There is a reservoir in the body of the seam sealer for holding a liquid adhesive. The reservoir has a discharge opening communicating with the bottom of the body, the discharge opening being located at one end of the projection. The discharge opening is adapted to deliver the liquid adhesive to the region between the opposing faces of the but seam as those faces are held open by the projection.

The invention will be better understood with reference to the attached drawing in which FIG. 1 is an isometric view from the bottom and sides of the seam sealer,

FIG. 2 is a top view of the sealer, and

FIG. 3 shows a cutaway view of the seam sealer positioned on a seam to be sealed.

Referring to FIG. 1, the body 1 may be of any suitable material such as a metal which may be aluminum, or an inert resin, plastic, or similar material which will remain unaffected in contact with the liquid adhesive to be used.

3,472,725 Patented Oct. l4, 1969 The body 1 has a bottom surface 2 on which is mounted the projection 3. The projection 3 is a keel-like projection which may conveniently be in the shape of an extended rectangle as shown in FIG. 1.The body 1 contains the reservoir 4 which is open to the top surface of the body 1 as shown in FIG. 2. The reservoir 4 communicates with the bottom surface 2 of the body 1 by means of the discharge opening 5 positioned at the end of the projection 3. The handles 6 may be conveniently mounted on the body 1 in order that the sealer may be pushed along the length of the seam in the direction of the projection 3. The handles 6 are used to push the seam sealer in a direction such that the projection 3 leads and the discharge opening 5 trails. In this manner the discharge opening 5 pours the adhesive contained in the reservoir 4 into the opening between the butt seam faces made by the projection 3.

Referring to FIG. 3, it can be seen that the projection 3 parts the opposing faces of the seam 7 made in a surface covering having a cellular backing 8, a supporting intermediate layer 9, and a wearing surface 10. The discharge opening 5 of the seam sealer floods the small gap 11 made by the projection 3 as it slides between opposing faces of the seam 7. However, the liquid adhesive contained in the reservoir 4 cannot run into any area other than the gap 11 since the discharge opening 5 is pressed against portions of the wearing surface 10. Hence as the seam sealer is pushed along the seam, the projection 3 opens the opposing faces of the butt seam, the discharge opening 5 floods the gap 11, and then the seam 7 closes behind the seam sealer as it is pushed on further down the seam. The amount of liquid adhesive to be deposited in a particular seam is controlled by the depth and width of the projection 3. One of the advantages of the seam sealer of the present invention is that it may be made in a small size to deposit small amounts of an adhesive at exactly the proper place and thus cause tight and strong seam bonding with simple apparatus and small amounts of adhesive. For example, the body of the seam sealer may conveniently measure 2 inches by 1.5 inches by 1 inch high and carry the two handles 6, each of which measures about 4- /2 inches in length. For sealing foambacked floor coverings, the projection may conveniently have a thickness of 0.03-0.05 inch with a depth in the range $4 4 inch, and preferably A3 inch. The length of the projection should be at least inch, but is preferably about 1 inch long, although its length may be longer if desired. The depth of the projection may be such that only the wearing surface of the floor covering is sealed, or, with a deeper projection, the liquid adhesive may be deposited between opposing faces of the foam backing in the butt joints.

In such a seam sealer, the reservoir may conveniently have a diameter of /2 inch and run almost the entire thickness of the sealer, the discharge opening having approximately the same width as the projection. Although the seam sealer as shown in the drawing is a rectangle, it will be appreciated it can be of any aesthetically pleasing or convenient shape. The projection may come to a point if desired at its leading edge, although experience has shown such is not necessary.

The liquid adhesive may be any of those known substances which will seal and adhere the material which makes up the opposing faces of the butt seam. For floor coverings made of poly(vinyl chloride) or other resinous materials, the liquid adhesive may in its simplest form be nothing more than a solvent for the poly(vinyl chloride) such as a ketone. Alternatively, the liquid adhesive can be solutions of resins or rubbers.

I claim:

1. A seam sealer comprising a body having a flat bottom adapted to slide along a flat surface having therein a butt seam to be adhesively sealed, a projection mounted on said bottom adapted to slide between and open the opposing faces of the butt seam to be sealed, and a reservoir in said body for holding a liquid adhesive, said reservoir having a discharge opening in said bottom at one end of said projection and forward of a flat portion of said bottom, said fiat portion being adapted to press said opposing faces into mutual adhesive contact.

2. A seam sealer according to claim 1 having a metal body.

3. A seam sealer according to claim 1 having handles mounted thereon.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 761,300 5/1904 Jeffrey 1l4224 5/1904 Jeffrey 114-224 5/1907 Eide 183.5 6/1915 Chappell 18-35 9/1915 Goetz 1l4224 8/1931 Randall 156-107 9/1950 Wilkerson 18-3.5

FOREIGN PATENTS 9/ 1929 France.

US. Cl. X.R. 

